Dian
"How are we ever going to find them?" Steven complained, as our horses slowly trudged their way down the muddy path.
"I told you this was going to be difficult when you opted to follow me." I sighed, as I leant forward to stroke my mare's dark neck. She let loose a puff of air in response and picked up her pace slightly, carrying me ahead of Steven and Cassandra.
"What are we even supposed to find in this gods forsaken part of the swamp anyway?" Cassandra muttered, brown hair plastered to the sides of her head, as the steady downpour continued to soak us.
"You know what." I answered, pulling my sodden cloak tighter around me; attempting to fend off the cold.
"There won't be anything there." Steven grumbled. "Just like there wasn't anything at the last place. Or the place before that." A sudden gust sent shivers up our spines as we rounded the corner, revealing a run down, wooden shack before us; broken stable to its side. "I mean, you remember Anastasia right?" He glares at me. "Do you really think she would have come from somewhere like this?" Water droplets were flung from his arm as he motions at the beat down cabin.
"We could at least stay there until this rain passes?" Cassandra questioned as she looked to me, eyes pleading. I nodded my head in response and lead the way towards the wooden carcass. Its windows had been broken and the door hung off its hinges while part of the roof was collapsed in. The stables hadn't fared much better over the unforgiving years.
"Let's make sure the horses have enough shelter first." I said, being met with groans from the others as I climbed from the saddle and led the mare to the broken stables. My eyes scanned the roof as I assessed the damage.
"What do we need to do?" Steven asked, pulling his stallion alongside mine and regarding the caved in wood.
"Get dry." Cassandra pouted from behind us.
I smiled as I replied. "Just clear some of the broken roof away, maybe try to push it back up a little." After I tied the mare to a nearby post, I made my way to the broken roof, before I pulled a soggy piece of timber away; letting it fall to the floor with a splat.
Steven tied his horse to the same post as mine before he came over to help. "What can I do?" His blue eyes peered to me through his plastered fringe.
"See that bit of lumber over there?" My hand shook as I pointed to a piece of wood the size of my arm and width of a horse's head. "Can you lift that as high as you can?"
Nodding the young soldier bent down and rested part of it on his shoulder before rising to his feet, lifting the whole thing up; and causing splinters of wood to rain down around him. As his face began turning red from the effort, I looked inside me and drew on the ties to mana. Pushing the magic outwards I linked the piece of timber Steven was holding to the connecting bits of wood either side of it; securing it in place.
"You can let go of it now." I grinned as he looked to me, confused, before slowly letting its weight go. The piece of lumber stuck, holding up more of the roof so there were only small trickles of water that fell into the building.
"I'm never going to get used to this magic stuff." He muttered as he shook his head, untying his stallion and leading him under the shelter.
"You've been with us for months now." Cassandra argued, her mood continuing to darken the longer we stayed in the dreary rain. "How could you possibly not be used to it?"
Steven frowned. "Just because you're in a bad mood doesn't mean the rest of us are." Great, I thought to myself, they're bickering like children again. A sigh escaped my lips as I tied my mare to the stable and turned my back on my two companions. The rain lashed against my face as I waded my way through the thick mud towards the run down shack. My footsteps seemed to reverberate through the wooden porch as I stepped up to the entryway; and gently pushed against the lopsided door.
